Social and Human Sciences
At a time when East Asian countries are facing challenges such as inequality, climate change, exclusion, discrimination, ageing, and international tensions, all of which have been magnified by the COVID-19 pandemic, UNESCO continues to push forward on its fundamental humanist mission to strengthen understanding among people, and to mobilize knowledge for just, fair, ethical, and inclusive societies. The Social and Human Sciences (SHS) Sector is assisting countries in East Asia to foster inclusive growth and reduce inequalities through producing knowledge to inform better policies and decision-making. Meanwhile, noting the acceleration of the use of frontier technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the sub-region, SHS is also assisting East Asian countries to develop their ethics infrastructure to better address issues related to these technologies, and to contribute to the global dialogue on bioethics and ethics of science and technology.
Our experience and successful cases:
- Promoting youth development
UNESCO Beijing Office has been working with partners at different levels to foster intercultural dialogues and engaging young people for peaceful and participatory societies. For example, the annual International 91Â鶹¹ú²ú¾«Æ·×ÔÅÄ on Creativity and Heritage along the Silk Roads (IYF), co-organized by UNESCO and Chinese partners, has directly benefitted more than 600 people from 137 countries along and beyond the Silk Roads since 2017. It has become a flagship programme to encourage youth participation and stimulate action-oriented youth-led initiatives for advancing the SDGs.
- Priority action on the 2021 UNESCO Recommendation of the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
The implementation of the Recommendation on the Ethics of AI at global and national levels remains a priority for UNESCO. UNESCO Beijing Office has been instrumental in promoting advocacy, raising awareness, building capacity, and conducting research on AI ethics in East Asia. In 2023, significant strides were made through initiatives such as the Ethics of AI - Readiness Assessment for Mongolia, in collaboration with UNU Macau and the Mongolian National Commission for UNESCO, which involved comprehensive stakeholder engagement and resulted in a tailored preliminary national AI roadmap. Additionally, the Office, in partnership with UNU Macau, hosted the "Ethical AI: Pioneering Progress in the Asia-Pacific" workshop in Macau, bringing together experts, policymakers, and stakeholders to address AI governance and ethical trends. These efforts are complemented by our ongoing collaboration with the International Research Center for AI Ethics and Governance at the Institute of Automation of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, UNU Macau, and Tsinghua University Institute for AI International Governance, focusing on workshops and conferences that advance the implementation of AI ethics based on the Recommendation. Through these initiatives, UNESCO Beijing continues to lead in fostering responsible AI development and ensuring that technological advancements contribute to just and inclusive societies across the region.
- Building capacities in bioethics and ethics of science and technology
UNESCO Beijing Office has endeavored to strengthen national and regional ethics infrastructures in East Asia to ensure that countries are able to orient the development and application of science, technology, and innovation (STI) in a way that promotes peace, justice, freedom, well-being, a humane social fabric, and the sustainability of life on the planet. An example in this area of work is the Office’s collaboration with Mongolian and Chinese partners to organize Ethics Teacher Training Courses (ETTCs) since 2016. These trainings, held in Ulaanbaatar, Beijing, and Macau, are designed to enhance the capacities of local stakeholders on ethics education, and have benefitted more than 150 participants. Beneficiaries of these trainings have also subsequently conducted teaching activities to share obtained knowledge of ethics and bioethics with their peers, students, and the public at the national level.
- Building peace with partners
UNESCO Beijing Office and the Nanjing Municipal Government signed a three-year MoU in 2020 to reiterate the significance of peace, and to formalize a partnership to promote peace and understanding among people. A primary activity under this partnership is the organization the Nanjing Peace Forum annually since 2020. The 2020, 2021 and 2023 editions of the Forum were attended by more than 1150 peace actors from all spheres of life online and offline.
What we can offer:
- Ethics of Artificial Intelligence (AI): Partnerships, advocacy, awareness raising, capacity building, and research for the implementation of the 2021 UNESCO Recommendation on the Ethics of AI.
- Build Ethics Capacities: Strengthen capacities in, as well as knowledge and awareness of, issues related to bioethics and ethics of science and technology, including on converging and frontier technologies such as neuro-technologies, to ensure sustainable development.
- Climate Change: Enhance capacities of Member States in the region to respond to ethical, social, and socioeconomic challenges due to climate change.
- Youth: Increase engagement of young women and men in building peaceful, inclusive, environmentally sound, and technologically aware sustainable societies, including through fostering intercultural dialogue platforms and upholding youth-led initiatives.
- Social Inclusion: Encourage Member States’ commitments to the global agenda and policy making in favor of more equal, just, inclusive, sustainable and peaceful societies, including on issues related to ageing, persons with disabilities, gender equality, etc.
